James Latham Welcomes First UK Shipment of FLEGT Licensed Door Blanks

Added 11.07.16

James Latham, the country’s biggest independent timber and panel products distributor, is preparing to receive the first shipment of FLEGT licensed timber to the UK from its supplier of tri-laminate, solid core hardwood door blanks, Flamebreak.

KTI, (Kutai Timber Indonesia), who manufacture Flamebreak door blanks will be one of only four mills included in a special ceremony which will take place in Jakarta on November 15th when the cargo is set to leave, with the shipment expected to arrive in the UK in early January 2017.

Shaun Hannan, Sales Director of Pacific Rim Wood Limited, who are the agents for Flamebreak door blanks in the UK explained, “This initiative has involved several agencies that have been working closely together for many years now to establish the first FLEGT licensed shipments to our UK buyers and as KTI’s biggest customer of Flamebreak door blanks in the UK, we have nominated James Latham as our customer who will be responsible for the first shipments of FLEGT licensed Flamebreak.”

FLEGT stands for Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade. The EU's FLEGT Action Plan was established in 2003 and aims to reduce illegal logging by strengthening sustainable and legal forest management, improving governance and promoting trade in legally produced timber.

Chris Sutton, Chairman and Managing Director of Lathams Limited said “We are delighted to be the first company in the UK to be able to offer FLEGT licensed Flamebreak door blanks from KTI. We continually strive to be at the forefront of environmental best practice in our industry and this fits perfectly with our ‘best in class’ environmental strategy.

“As members of the Timber Trade Federation we were the first signatory to the Federation’s Responsible Purchasing Policy. Plus, all 10 of our depots are Forest Stewardship Council (FSC®) and Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC®) certified.

“We only source materials from suppliers who are operating within the laws of their own country and have made positive moves towards only stocking material originating from sustainable and correctly managed forests, in particular FSC® and PEFC® certified products and the addition of FLEGT licensed timber from KTI to our portfolio strengthens our environmental offering even further.”